Short Essay Questions

1. What was Petronius' title in the emperor's court and what significance was the title?

2. Explain Encolpius and Ascyltus' fight over Giton after their dinner at Trimalchio's.

3. Is Petronius a typical satirist for his era? Why or why not?

4. What happens when Encolpius and Ascyltus go to the marketplace to sell a stolen cloak?

5. How does Petronius treat sordid events in his story? How would other writers from the era have treated them?

6. What is the relationship between Giton and Encolpius?

7. What points to Titus Petronius as the author of "The Satyricon" other than writing style and language?

8. What character fault does Eumolpus have and how does Encolpius try to help him overcome it?

9. What link does Petronius fail to make in "The Satyricon"?

10. What joke involving a pig does Trimalchio play on his guests?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In both stories ("The Satyricon" and "The Apocolocyntosis"), authorship is questioned by various scholars. How does the consensus prove who wrote which? How do they know the stories are by different authors?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss Eumolpus' lie in the city of Croton. How does he cover it over a period of time?